


Pretty Please?

by PattRose



Series: The Rafe Series [1]
Category: The Sentinel
Genre: Angst, Ficlet, Humor, Kid Fic, M/M, Series, Slash, Sweet
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-04-13
Updated: 2013-10-20
Packaged: 2017-11-03 13:55:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/382050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PattRose/pseuds/PattRose
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What has Rafe been keeping secret for a long, long while?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Pretty Please?

Pretty Please?  
By Patt 

Rafe knocked on the door of the loft and Jim opened it. “Hey Rafe, who do you have here?” 

“This is my son, Martin, he’s 6 months old.” Rafe said as way of introduction.  
“Hell, I didn’t even know you had a kid.” Jim said. 

Rafe took a deep breath and asked, “Ellison, do you think you could keep an eye on him tonight while I’m on stakeout? His mother took off three months ago and I’m raising him alone.” 

“I’m not set up for kids, Rafe.” 

“I have his little bed downstairs if you can do it. He can sit in the playpen the entire time I’m gone. He’s a good baby. I’m desperate. My babysitter has strep.” 

Martin held his arms out and tried to go to Jim. Rafe smiled and said, “See, he likes you, Ellison.” 

“He might like me, but I know nothing about babies.” 

“You don’t need to know much, man. Can you do it or not, Henri is waiting downstairs. I can’t call in sick again, Simon will have my ass.” 

“Fine, bring it all up, but at the first sign of trouble, you’re getting him back.” Ellison took the baby from Rafe so he could go down and get the baby’s things. 

When he came back he said, “Here are his bottles, already pre-made and his diapers and his baby food. He’s a good little guy, you wait and see.” 

“Try to hurry up with the stake-out.” Jim said making faces at Martin.  
“Jim, I’m on stake-out all night long. I won’t be here until the morning.” 

“Get out of here before I change my mind.” Jim shut the door behind the retreating father. 

“So Martin, how long has it been since you’ve been stuck with that father of yours?” Jim laughed at his little joke until he realized that Rafe had been trying to do the single parent thing for three months and no one new. That’s why he keeps missing Poker night… 

“Well too bad, Blair is out of town, because he would keep you busy all night long. You just tell me when you want to do something. How about the news? Would you like to watch the news with me?” 

Martin slapped Jim’s cheeks and laughed out loud. 

“News, it is.” Jim sat down with the remote and Martin immediately went for that. 

“No, this is Jim’s. I don’t even share it with Blair.” 

They watched the news for about 10 minutes and Martin began to get fussy. He started to cry outright and Jim got up to get his bottle ready. “You sit right here on the sofa while I get your bed set up, okay?” And Jim did just that. He got it all put up and got the baby’s bottle and brought it over to Martin. He held him as he fed him and Martin started to fall asleep. 

“Your Daddy has been very whiny at work lately and we’re all sick of him, but I’m going to put the word out that he might need a little help with you, okay Martin?” 

The baby was sound to sleep and Jim laid him down in the playpen. He figured he would sleep on the sofa next to the bed in case the baby woke during the night. He couldn’t imagine trying to do something like this every night without Blair’s help. So he knew how tired Rafe must be. 

Jim brought down his pillow and his quilt and laid down on the sofa. Martin really was a cutie pie. Rafe was right, he was a good baby. 

When Rafe got there in the morning, both were still sleeping. 

The end 


	2. A Day Off

A Day Off - Patt 

Sequel to Pretty Please because Tayla asked for it. 

When Jim heard the knock on the door, he couldn’t believe that he and little baby Martin had slept all night long. Rafe was right, he was a good baby. 

Jim opened up the door to an exhausted Rafe and smiled. “How did the stakeout go?” 

Rafe smiled back as much as he could and answered, “We caught the guy, so it was a busy night, but now I get to go home and relax a little with Martin.” 

Jim just stared at him strangely and said, “You worked all day yesterday and all night, you can’t possibly be in good enough shape to watch your son.” 

“I have no choice, Jim. I need to go; Brown is waiting downstairs for me.” Rafe leaned down to wake little Martin up. 

“I’ve got a better idea. I’m off today, I’ll keep an eye on Martin and you sleep in the spare room. How does that sound?” Jim offered. 

Rafe smiled and answered, “I think that’s above and beyond the call of friendship, it’s enough that you watched him last night. I really appreciate that, but he’s my child, I had better do it.” 

“Oh shut up and go take a shower and go to bed. Martin and I will be just fine.” Jim ordered wearing a big smile. 

“In that case, can I borrow some sweats or something to sleep in?” Rafe asked shyly. He pulled out his cell phone and called Henri to tell him he wasn’t coming down. 

Jim walked up the stairs and got all sorts of clothing for Rafe, they were almost the same size, so this would work out just fine. As he came down the stairs, he saw the devoted father leaning into the crib and kissing his son on his little head. 

Jim handed the clothing to Rafe and said, “Here you go. Have a shower and go to sleep. I’ve got his car seat if we need to go anywhere. And if I have any problems, I know where you are.” 

Rafe yawned and said, “Thank you again, Jim. I’m just going to sleep for a few hours, because otherwise I won’t be able to sleep tonight. See you later.” 

Jim said, “Let me run in the bathroom really fasts before you do. You keep an eye on Martin while I take a fast shower and get ready for your day off. What would you like for dinner tonight?” 

“Jim, you don’t have to feed me. Are you lonely without Blair here?” Rafe asked.

“I have to feed me and figured we could share dinner. And yes, I’m lonely without Blair. The loft seems empty without him.” 

“I know the feeling, believe me, but at least your better half is coming home.” Rafe said sadly. 

“I’m really sorry about your wife, Rafe. I can’t believe she left this little boy like he was nothing. He’s a very good little guy, just like you told me he was.” Jim said on his way up the stairs to get his things for his shower. 

Martin chose that moment to wake up and let his dad know he didn’t like wet diapers and he was very hungry. Rafe picked him up lovingly and began his morning ritual with his son, except that it was at a different house. 

Jim jumped in the shower so that Rafe would have some peace, quiet and sleep all day long if needed. 

When he walked out of the shower all dressed and ready for the day, Rafe was holding Martin, feeding him his bottle and was almost asleep. Rafe, not Martin. Jim just smiled and picked Martin up. 

“Rafe, get in and take your shower and get to bed. I’ve got some running to do. I’ll give him a bath in the sink, if that’s okay with you and we’ll make a day of it.” 

Rafe yawned, got up and walked into the bathroom and took his shower. While he was in there, Jim gave Martin a bath in the kitchen sink, which was cleaner than most people’s bath tubs any day. Martin splashed and talked his little baby talk to Jim and laughed and smiled the whole time. Jim got him out, and dried him off and told him they were going bye-bye. Jim found his clean clothing in the baby bag and got him all dressed to go. 

Rafe walked out and said, “You’re really good with him, Ellison, I’m surprised.” 

“If you’re surprised, why did you leave him with me?” Jim wondered aloud. 

“I didn’t know what else to do. It’s been a nightmare, let me tell you. Are you two going somewhere?” 

“I thought I would take him to see everyone at Major Crimes, if that’s all right with you.” Jim said. 

Rafe smiled and said, “That would be great. Conner has always asked what he’s like, so she’ll be able to see him.” 

“Give Martin a kiss and then go to bed.” Jim ordered. 

Rafe did just that, and walked into the spare room and lay down on the spare bed and was asleep within seconds. 

[[[]]] 

At the bullpen, everyone went crazy over the baby. Conner walked into the room and said, “Oh my god, is this the cutest baby you’ve ever seen?” 

Everyone was shocked when Simon asked to hold him. Well, Jim wasn’t, after all, Simon had a son and was good with him. Simon asked Jim, “Would you like to go somewhere for lunch?” 

“That would be great. Then his Daddy can sleep a little while longer and I can feed him because he’s going to get fussy soon. I can tell.” Jim took him back into his arms and they headed out for lunch. 

At the elevator, all the bullpen gang came over and said goodbye and kissed on him. Martin loved the attention. 

Conner said, “Ellison, tell Rafe that if he needs a sitter again, that I would gladly help him out too.” 

“Okay, I’ll tell him you said so.” Jim replied. 

Jim had a feeling that Rafe wouldn’t have it as hard from this day on. All of Major Crime wanted to help him out. 

[[[[[]]]]] 

During lunch, Jim fed Martin his baby food and he was a very happy camper. He ate two jars and Simon finally said, “I think that’s probably enough, Ellison. Don’t have the kid burst from too much food.” 

Both men laughed and so did Martin. He was such a happy baby, that they both realized what a great job Rafe was doing. 

“I’m going to watch how many stake-outs I put Rafe on, because I know the single parent life must be really hard on him, and he’s never complained, not even once.” Simon said with admiration. 

Jim’s cell went off and he answered it with smile knowing it was Blair. “Hey Chief, how are you doing?” 

“I have a break and I knew you were off so I thought I would call and talk dirty to you.” Blair teased. 

“I’m at lunch with Simon and Martin.” Jim said happily. 

“Who the hell is Martin?” Blair asked. 

“Did you know that Rafe had a baby boy named Martin? And his wife left him three months ago, so he’s been trying to do everything by himself since. Anyhow, he had stakeout last night and didn’t have anywhere to take him, so I watched him. And Rafe was exhausted, so I insisted that he stay over in the spare room and get some sleep. Simon and I are entertaining Martin as we speak.” 

Martin was trying to get the cell phone away from Jim. 

“I always miss the fun stuff. Why didn’t Rafe tell us?” Blair asked. 

“I have a feeling; he was embarrassed about his wife leaving him and didn’t want to say anything.” Jim answered. 

“No, I mean, why didn’t any of us know about Martin? We’ll start babysitting one day a week if that’s all right with you. We’ll never have children, so it would be nice to enjoy someone else’s now and then.” Blair said. 

Jim smiled into the phone and answered, “That’s fine with me, he’s a darling baby.” 

“Well, I have to go, tell Simon hello for me. I love you and miss you.” Blair said sadly. This week was going by especially slow. 

“I love you too. Be safe and we’ll see you soon.” Jim closed his cell and Simon just smiled over at him. 

Simon said, “Let me guess, he wants to babysit every week, right?” 

“Something like that.” Jim laughed along with Simon. 

When they finished lunch, Jim put Martin in his car seat and they were ready to head back to the loft. Jim figured that Rafe had about just the right amount of sleep to make him feel better. 

[[[[[]]]]] 

Rafe woke up suddenly wondering where he was and where in the hell was Martin? Then he realized he was at Jim Ellison’s loft and Jim had Martin. He immediately calmed down. 

He relieved himself, brushed his teeth with his finger and started some coffee in the kitchen. Jim walked through the doorway and both Martin and Rafe’s faces lit up. 

“How is my boy?” Rafe took Martin from Jim right away and kissed and hugged him.  
Martin cooed and laughed. He loved being with his daddy. 

“Thank you so much, Jim, you have no idea how great I feel right now. I’m all rested for the night with Martin, now. Was he good for you?” Rafe asked. 

“He’s an excellent baby, Rafe. I loved taking care of him today. And I talked to Sandburg and he said we get to babysit at least once a week.” Jim watched the smile come over Rafe’s face. 

He replied, “You won’t get any complaints from me. Every now and then I could use the help. Now could I ask you a big favor?” 

“Sure, what do you need?” Jim asked. 

Rafe said, “I need a ride home. I just realized I don’t have my car here. Brown dropped me off and I would like to get Martin home and back into his routine.” 

Jim smiled and said, “You got it, Rafe. Let’s get all of his things together and I’ll take you home. And by the way, if you can’t get a sitter on Poker night, just bring Martin with you. We can put him in the spare room if he’s sleeping, all right?” 

Rafe beamed with happiness. “That would be great, thanks.” 

They loaded everything up in the truck and went to Rafe’s house. When Rafe was all done carrying everything inside, he turned to Jim. “You have no idea what this meant to me. I haven’t had a day off in three months. It might seem like a simple thing to you, but to me, it was wonderful. I thank you and Martin thanks you too.” Rafe then gave Jim a hug and Jim let him. He figured he was very moved and didn’t want to ruin the moment for Rafe. 

Jim kissed Martin’s cheek and walked back to his truck. He was going to miss the little guy. He was the sweetest baby he’d ever been around. Oh hell, he was the only baby he’d ever been around. And Jim vowed to give Rafe more than just a day off now and then. 

Life was good when filled with friends. 

The end 


	3. Martin

Martin  
By Patt

Jim had to work with Rafe that evening and Blair agreed to watch Martin, Rafe’s little six month old son. It was supposed to be simple, until Blair went and fell in love. 

Jim never thought about Blair falling in love with a six month old baby. But it happened and now Jim would have to deal with a childless, Blair.

Blair found out how wonderful a six month old baby could be and he had great fun teaching him little things while his daddy was working with Uncle Jim. The evening flew by and before long, Rafe was there to pick Martin up. Blair didn’t want to let him go and Jim saw the anguish on his lover’s face. 

Once Rafe and Martin left, Blair was very quiet and moped around the loft. Jim finally said, “Want to talk about it?”

“Nothing to talk about Jim. We can’t have children and I knew that from the beginning,” Blair explained. 

“He’s a cutie pie isn’t he?” Jim asked. 

“He’s precious and I miss him already,” Blair admitted. 

Jim looked at his love and asked, “Ever think about adoption?”

Blair smiled and said, “I didn’t think you were interested.”

“I’d love to have a family with you,” Jim confessed. 

“Let’s think about it and in the mean time, let’s babysit Martin more than once a week, so we can practice,” Blair suggested. 

“Sounds good to me, Blair,” Jim leaned in and kissed his love and knew they would work things out. 

The end


	4. Happy Birthday, Martin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rafe’s son Martin is one already and Rafe decides to have a big party and invite the gang.

[ ](http://s71.photobucket.com/user/PattRose1/media/hapybirthdaymartin_zps9bfb2c49.jpg.html)

Happy Birthday, Martin  
By Patt

 

Summary: Rafe’s son Martin is one already and decides to have a big party and invite the gang. 

 

When Jim and Blair walked into the bullpen, they saw an envelope on each of their desks. The envelope had balloons all over it and the men both knew it was from Rafe. Martin was crazy about balloons. 

Jim opened his first and smiled as he read the invitation. 

Blair opened his next and joined in on the smiling. “Wow, this is great. I can’t believe how fast the last six months has gone by.”

Simon walked over to the two men and said, “So what are you getting for Martin for his birthday?”

Without missing a beat, Jim said, “I think since Rafe has the house, we’re getting him a swing set. He would love it, I know that much.”

“Do I get a say in the gift department?” Blair asked. 

“You don’t like my idea?” Jim wondered aloud. 

“You get him the swing set, I’m going to get him shoes and clothes. He needs both. I noticed the last time we babysat.”

Simon looked at Blair and said, “Don’t you think that’s a little boring?”

“Not to Rafe, it’s not boring. He needs help, Simon. Get a grip,” Blair said, angrily as he walked into the break room. 

“What do you think I should get him?” Simon asked Jim. 

“One of those race car beds. They are so damn cute and he would love it. Rafe was saying Martin gets out of his crib all the time. Someone else could get him one of those ride on cars for the back yard,” Jim suggested. 

“I always wanted to get one of those race car beds for Daryl, but he was sixteen and I thought he might not fit,” Simon said, laughing. Jim laughed too. 

“Do you know where to get them?” Jim asked. 

“Not a clue. Do you?”

“Walmart has the best prices on them. Try them first,” Jim said. 

“I’m going to go shopping at lunch time, do you want to go with me?” Simon asked. 

“No, I’ll never hear the end of it, if Blair and I don’t shop together. Things have been rough anyhow, I don’t want to add to his stress.”

“What are you talking about?” Simon asked. 

“They haven’t called us back after all the papers we filled out for adoption for an older child. So, Blair has more or less given up.”

“I’m sorry, Jim. I wish things were different for both of you. Better get back to work, here comes your better half.”

Jim smiled at Blair, but Blair didn’t return the smile as he sat at his desk. 

“Chief, do you want to go shopping tonight after work for clothes, shoes and anything else you want to get?”

Blair finally smiled and said, “Yeah, I think I would like that a lot. And we have to get him some books. His are getting worn out. A child has to have books.”

“Okay. Here comes Rafe, find out the sizes and we’ll go from there,” Jim said. 

Blair did just that, while Jim continued working on the files he needed to get done. 

@@@@@

When Jim and Blair walked into the loft, they were both bogged down with gifts. Jim couldn’t believe how much money they had already spent and Jim hadn’t even picked out the swing set yet. 

Blair said, “Let’s put everything in the office and we’ll get them all wrapped in a little while.”

Jim felt the sadness come off of Blair and pulled him into his arms. “I love you, Chief.”

“I love you, too, Jim. But, sometimes that doesn’t seem to be enough and that’s my problem, not yours.”

“It is my problem, since you are my life. Maybe it’s time we called them again,” Jim suggested. 

“And have them treat us like shit again?” Blair wondered aloud. 

“I’m sorry, Chief.”

“So am I.”

Blair decided to perk up some. “Let’s wrap these presents now.”

“Sounds good to me, Blair.”

They worked for the next two hours and wrapped about 22 presents. Yes, Blair had gone overboard, but it was going to be worth it.

 

@@@@@

Connor was one of the first ones to arrive at Rafe’s house that day. Rafe was thrilled when she walked in with a huge gift and a happy smile on her face. 

“I don’t know what I would do without all of you,” Rafe confessed. 

“Did Jimbo tell you what he got him?”

“No, what?” 

“A swing set.” Connor let out a booming laugh and said, “His tough guy image is shot, know what I mean?”

Rafe laughed too. “He and Hairboy take such good care of Martin. Speaking of Martin, he’s just waking up. I better get him.”

“I’ll get him, you answer the door,” Connor bossed. 

As soon as she walked away the doorbell rang. Rafe wondered if Connor was a little psychic? Then he realized, psycho maybe, but not psychic. He opened the door to Simon and Brown. The walked in wearing big smiles. 

“You guys must have all left your tough guy images at work. You all big pussy cats,” Rafe said, laughing. 

“Pussy cats? Are you saying we’re pussy whipped?” Simon asked. 

“No, not at all,” Rafe said, still laughing. 

Simon glared at Rafe and said, “I have a huge package for Martin. I need help carrying it in.”

Brown set his package down and said, “I’ll help you.”

“Okay.”

The two men went out for the new race car bed. Simon was so excited about this gift. He only wished that Jim and Blair would get their chance someday. 

Joel arrived and said, “Simon, are you trying to show us up?”

Joel was carrying a medium sized gift. 

Simon laughed and said, “I couldn’t pass this up. Wait until you see it.”

As they walked in the door, Connor came out with Martin. 

Everyone’s face lit up and Joel grabbed him from Connor first. “How is our big boy doing on his first birthday?”

“Tell them all, you are happy with your family here,” Rafe said. 

They all beamed with happiness. 

Jim and Blair walked in and Jim said, “I need help carrying packages in.”

Everyone but Joel went out to help carry in things. Rafe saw the unwrapped swing set and said, “Jim and Blair, you shouldn’t have.”

Blair laughed. “I didn’t. It’s all from Jim. These other packages are from me.”

All I know is my son has the best family in the world. Thank you for coming, everyone. “

@@@@@

Once the party was over, they all helped Rafe put the bed together and then the swing set. It had been a long and fun day. Everyone left happy as can be.

@@@@@

Once home, Jim noticed how quiet Blair was and wasn’t happy about it.

“Blair, would you like to give our relationship a break and see if you’d like to start a family somewhere?”

Blair went into his arms and began to shake. “I can’t live without you, man. Don’t ever say that again.”

The phone rang and Jim answered while still holding on to Blair. 

‘Ellison.”

“Mr. Ellison, this is Sandra Tyler from the adoption agency.”

“Hello, Ms. Tyler, what can I do for you?” Blair got closer so he could hear, too. 

“We were wondering if you would be open to a set of twins that are four months? Their parents gave up their rights and are in prison. So, there would be no problems later down the road. If you’re interested, I could set up an appointment for tomorrow. You would have to have two cribs and dressers and a long list of things, I will give you when you come to talk to me. If you’re interested.”

Jim said, “We’re interested. There is no doubt about that. When can we see you?”

“Tomorrow morning?” Ms. Tyler asked. 

“But tomorrow is Sunday,” Jim said and Blair kicked him. 

“We need to find a home for them very quickly. Your names came up on the computer and we thought you might be a good fit,” Ms.Tyler said. 

“What time?” JIm asked. 

“9:00 would be good for me. The twins are girls and they are identical.”

“We’ll be there at nine,” JIm answered before he hung up the phone. 

Blair hugged Jim so hard that Jim thought he wouldn’t be able to breathe right. “Do you believe it?”

“We need to go shopping right now,” Jim said. 

“It’s only 2:00, so, we have plenty of time to find cribs. This is so damn exciting, “Blair admitted. 

“Come on, let’s get out of here. We have a lot to do before tomorrow, Blair.”

“We sure do. This is going to be so much fun, Jim.”

 

TBC


	5. Welcome, Naomi and Grace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The boys adopt twins and name them after their mothers. This is all thanks to a reader named, Dani, who named the girls for me and has inspired me to write more in this universe. Thank you, Dani.

[ ](http://s71.photobucket.com/user/PattRose1/media/Twins-baby-shower-card_zpsc2f25882.jpg.html)

Welcome, Naomi and Grace!  
By Patt

 

Summary: The boys adopt twins and name them after their mothers. This is all thanks to a reader named, Dani, who named the girls for me and has inspired me to write more in this universe. Thank you, Dani.

[ ](http://s71.photobucket.com/user/PattRose1/media/new-baby-clipart-1_zps2b8f48b7.jpg.html)

The guys were up at four a.m. that morning. They couldn’t sleep and had tons to do. They had went the night before and bought two cribs, dressing table, dresser, baby swings, cloth diapers, clothing for four month old baby girls, car seats, diaper bags and they had put everything together and did the room up. They wanted to be set if the State checked them out, which they would no doubt do. 

“Jim, the nursery looks darling, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah, Chief, it does. We need to decide on some names and I have a suggestion for one of them.”

“I hadn’t even thought that far ahead yet. What name were you thinking?” Blair asked, sweetly. 

“Naomi Jade Sandburg-Ellison. What do you think?” Jim beamed when he had spoken the name out loud. 

“You would name one of our babies after my mom? Wow, you are a good man, Jim Ellison.”

“What about the second baby girl?” Jim wondered. 

“I like the name Grace Christine Sandburg-Ellison, myself. What do you think?”  
It was Blair’s turn to be excited, this time. 

“I like it. Named after both of our moms. It warms my heart. Great job, Blair.”

“I love it. Our own little Naomi and Grace. I like it that they aren’t cutesy names, too. Good, old fashioned names are the best,” Blair admitted. 

“Let’s get the new diaper bags filled for the trip to the agency,” Jim suggested. 

Blair pulled out two sleepers, one for each bag. Diapers, bibs, bottles, juice, formula in three different types and finally, a camera to take pictures of their first day together. 

Jim smiled over at Blair and asked, “Do you think that they’ll let us take them today?”

“I sure hope so, otherwise they’re going to have an unhappy camper to deal with. In fact, it would be two unhappy campers.”

“You have that right, Blair.”

“Jim, I can’t believe you bought a new vehicle yesterday, just so we have more room for the twins.”

“Well, we have to have enough room for them and Rafe’s son, Martin. I just know they’re going to get along beautifully.

“Where are the car seats?” Blair asked. 

“We left them in the new car,” Jim said, and smiled.

“Oh yeah, I forgot.”

“You’ve had other things on your mind, not to mention that we’re exhausted,” Jim confessed. 

“I think we should head over to see Sandra Tyler. It might look good if we’re early,” Blair pointed out. 

“God, I hope we get them today,” Jim said. 

“They probably have to check out the house first, but we’re ready. It helped to put the baby gate on the stairs up to the bedroom. And it also helped to have all of the other baby proof items we bought and installed.”

“It never pays to be on top of things,” Jim said. 

“Don’t talk like that or we’ll never get out of the loft,” Blair teased. 

Jim swatted Blair’s butt and they both walked out the door. 

@@@@@

Once at the agency, they signed in and sat in the waiting room and did just that. They waited and waited and waited. Finally at 9:30, Sandra Tyler opened the office door and called out, “Jim Ellison and Blair Sandburg, follow me.”

The boys didn’t have to be told more than once. They followed her into her office and sat down in front of her desk. 

“Relax, both of you. You’re in the final stretch. In fact, if we can have the house inspected tomorrow, you can have the girls on Monday night, “Ms. Tyler said. 

Jim handed her a key to the loft and said, “Inspect away.”

“You have to be there, Jim. So, tomorrow morning would be a great time for the inspection and if everything goes well, you’ll have your daughter’s tomorrow night,” Ms. Tyler said, wearing a big smile. 

“We did the nursery up last night, so I think we might do okay on the inspection,” Blair said. 

“Good for you. Would you like to see some pictures of the darlings?”

Jim and Blair both moved their chairs closer to the desk, so they could see the pictures. 

“Oh my gosh. They are darling,” Blair said, happily. 

“How are we going to tell them apart?” Jim asked. 

“One of them has a mole on her right ear. So, it’s easy to tell them apart. Have you chosen any names for them yet?” Ms. Tyler asked, hopefully. 

Jim told her the names they had chosen and why and she seemed quite impressed. 

“I’ll tell you what, you head home and give us two hours and we’ll meet you there. We’ll do the inspection today.”

Jim stood up and said, “We’ll be ready.”

“Thank you, Ms. Tyler.”

“You are most welcome. See you in a couple of hours. I have to hunt up two people to do this on a Sunday,” Ms. Tyler said, almost laughing. 

She walked them to the elevator and saw them get on, smiling at each other like it was THE happiest moment in their lives. 

@@@@@

Once they were home, Jim started making calls to their friends while Blair tried to have a nervous breakdown. Jim called Simon, Joel, Rafe, Henri and Connor. Then he realized he needed to call Dan Wolfe and Rhonda. This was the happiest moment in their lives and they wanted to share it with everyone. 

As Jim hung up the phone for the last time, he smiled and said, “They’re here.”

Blair went over to the door and unlocked it and opened it to Ms. Tyler and two nice looking men.

“Hello, Ms. Tyler. Come in, please?” Blair asked. 

“Jim and Blair, this is Mel Travis and Bob Miller. They are going to do the inspection. So just sit in the living room and relax,” she said.   
Jim shook hands with both of the men and told them to make themselves at home. Blair did more or less the very same thing. 

Jim and Blair sat down in the living room on the sofa and just held hands. They were so nervous. Them being parents was all riding on this inspection. 

Jim was starting to get more nervous as the time wore on. They had been there for three hours already. They were checking everything, in every room. Jim knew that Blair was scared something was wrong. He looked at Blair and whispered, “Do you want me to listen?”

Blair shook his head, no. So, Jim abided by Blair’s rule and didn’t listen. (Even if he was dying to do it anyhow.)

At three o’clock they all walked into the living room and Ms. Tyler said, “When would you like to pick up Naomi and Grace?”

Jim got up and shook hands with Ms. Tyler and then with the two men, too. Blair followed suit. Then Jim hugged Blair. 

“We would like to pick the girls up as soon as possible. We have car seats in the SUV. Where are the girls, anyhow?” Jim asked. 

“They are at this address, but I need you to follow me down to my office to sign the papers on my desk. Then tomorrow, you’ll have to see Judge Harrison to get their names legally changed. Then in six months you will have a review and you’ll sign papers to adopt them. Good luck to both of you. I just knew you would make nice parents.”

“We’ll follow you to your office now and then go and pick up our daughters,” Blair said. 

“Wow, that has a nice ring to it,” Jim said, happily. 

@@@@@

As Jim drove over to the office, Blair sat beside him and called Rafe. 

“Rafe.”

“Brian, we get our girls tonight. Tell Martin he is going to have two little cousins named Naomi and Grace. We can’t wait for them to meet,” Blair said. 

“This is great news. Want me to call everyone so they can come over and see the babies tonight?” Rafe asked. 

“Jim, do we want everyone over tonight?” Blair asked. 

“No, tomorrow night we’ll have everyone by. But, tonight she needs to get used to just us,” Jim said. 

“Did you hear that Brian?”

“Sure did. We’ll see you tomorrow night,” Rafe said before he hung up. 

Neither of the guys said much of anything the rest of the way to Ms. Tyler’s office. They were too darn excited. 

Once they arrived, they signed everything and then left to the place where their girls were. 

The people at the foster home were expecting Jim and Blair and had the girls all set to go. 

Jim picked up the baby with the mole on her ear and said, “This is going to be Grace.”

Blair picked up Naomi and said, “I guess that means you’re Naomi, little one.”

Both of the twins were very excited to go with them, which pleased Jim and Blair to no end. 

They got them all buckled into their seats and drove to their new home. Things were never going to be the same again. And Jim and Blair were glad of that. 

“Blair, you’re going to call your mom tonight and see if you can get her to come and see her grandbabies.”

“All right, Jim. And you have to call your dad and brother and tell them they have two new family members to meet.”

“Deal,” Jim replied.   
The men held hands all the way home with the sleeping babies in the back seat. This was a new chapter in their life and they were ready for it.


	6. Welcome to Parenthood, Jim and Blair

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The babies are having a little bit of a hard time settling down in the Sandburg-Ellison household and the poor guys are exhausted.

Welcome to Parenthood, Jim and Blair  
By PattRose

 

Summary: The babies are having a little bit of a hard time settling down in the Sandburg-Ellison household and the poor guys are exhausted.   
Word Count: 1662

 

**Day Five**

“Jim, it’s been five nights of them not sleeping all night. Everyone said four month old babies slept through the night. Why aren’t they? And why do they cry all the time?”

“Why are you asking me? Let’s call Rafe and ask him. At least he’s been through this before,” Jim suggested. 

Blair called Rafe’s house and heard, “Hello?”

“Brian, it’s me, Blair. Help!!!!!”

Laughter could be heard from Rafe and this made Jim smile. He hoped someday they would look back on this and laugh too. 

“So, what’s wrong, Blair?” Rafe asked. 

“They keep crying and they wake up all night long. The day care said they cry there too,” Blair explained. 

“I’ll be over in a few minutes. Connor is here, so she can stay with Martin and I’ll rush right over,” Rafe said. 

“Thank you, man. We need all the help we can get.”

The girls had been sleeping for about thirty minutes and they both woke each other up again. “I swear, they’re waking each other up and that’s the problem,” Jim thought outloud. 

“Well, we only have one bedroom for them, Jim.”

“We could look for a house with three or four bedrooms, couldn’t we? And why didn’t I call my dad? Where in the hell is my head at these days?” Jim asked. 

“Yes, a house would be a great idea and why you didn’t call your dad is beyond me,” Blair replied. 

“Do you think I should call him now?” Jim asked. 

“Jim, do whatever you want, but we need to stop the babies from crying right now,” Blair suggested. 

“I know, I’m getting another headache. They looked so calm and peaceful when we picked them up. What happened?” Jim wondered. 

“Got me, time to go in and change and feed them again.”

They both walked into the bedroom to two red faced darlings screaming their lungs out. Jim picked up Grace and Blair picked Naomi up and they both were quiet for a change. Both men sighed in happiness. They changed their diapers and went in to fix their bottles. 

Once they were fed and changed, they seemed to be happy. Grace was the first one to fall asleep in Jim’s arms. Then Naomi was next. Jim whispered, “Why are they so sweet right now?”

“Got me,” Blair answered. 

There was a knock at the door and both girls woke up screaming. Blair got up to answer it with a crying Naomi in his arms. “Hello, Rafe, welcome to our world.”

Rafe started laughing and took Naomi from Blair and bounced her a couple of times and she settled right down. “Are they sleeping in the same room?”

“Of course they are, we only have one,” Jim said over the screaming baby he was holding. 

“Jim, bounce her like I’m doing with Naomi and see if that calms her.”

Jim tried it as he paced and sure enough, she calmed down. “Thanks, Rafe. Are we too nervous or something?”

“I don’t think so, or Martin would have picked up on it. I think they’re waking each other up all night, making them fussy and crabby for you two. Let’s move one of the cribs out here and the other one can stay in the bedroom. You can see how that works for a starter. And then it doesn’t help that their room is close to that man that listens to loud music all night. They probably hear it and it bothers them. If I was you, I would look into getting a house and soon. You could rent one for now and see how it feels,” Rafe said, hoping he was helping. 

Jim put Grace in the bedroom and Blair lay Naomi down in the living room. They were both asleep and Rafe said, “Now, is when you try and get some sleep. No fooling around, either. Just sleep.”

Blair said, “Believe me, fooling around isn’t on our schedule at all.”

Rafe laughed out loud but it didn’t wake Naomi at all. “I’m going to leave. You two have to work this out sooner or later. But, I really think you need a new home.”

“Thanks for everything, Rafe,” Jim said as he walked him to the door. 

Once Rafe left, the guys got ready for bed and still sleeping babies. Jim smiled all the way upstairs. He and Blair curled into each others bodies and slept the entire night. At six in the morning, Naomi was crying like crazy, but Grace was still quiet. Blair went down and got Naomi up and ran the bath water for her. Jim came in and said, “I’ll get Grace.”

“Don’t wake her up,” Blair said. 

“I have to give her a bath before we get them ready to go. Otherwise they smell like urine. You know I can’t stand that,” Jim reminded Blair. 

“Okay, why don’t you get her and we’ll get her in the tub with Naomi and I’ll take care of it while you make their breakfast,” Blair offered. 

“Thanks, Chief. I’ll get her now,” Jim said happily. It was amazing how great a person felt after a good nights sleep. Jim took all of Grace’s clothes off and said, “Time for a bath, sugar.”

Jim could hear Blair in there laughing and talking to their daughters and it was such a different scene than the other ones. Jim was so grateful for a nights sleep that he made really nice sandwiches for he and Blair to take to the station. Yes, he was ahead of the game that day. 

“Jim, I’m ready to give you Naomi, if you want to get her dressed,” Blair called out. 

Jim came into the room and grabbed her, happily and took her into her bedroom. “You’re going to have a much better day today, I know you are. No more crying, we’re going to move.” Jim got busy and got her completely dressed and then sat her in the high chair. “Time for breakfast, sweetie.”

He was feeding her when Blair came out with a completely dressed Grace. “This little jewel is ready to eat. She sucked on her thumb the entire time I was dressing her.”

Blair put her in the high chair and began to feed her. They both ate really well and then drank a bottle. Both of them fell asleep as they sat in their swings. 

“Okay, Chief, you first. Shower fast,” Jim bossed. 

“Will do. Thanks, man.” Blair pulled him down for a sweet kiss before he got all of his things for the shower. Blair was true to his word. He was out and dressed in no time flat. Jim was just as fast and they were ready to go in record time. They had been late to work all week long so this was like a new record. 

After they dropped the girls off at the day care that Martin went to, they were driving to work and Jim said, “Blair, I’m going to call a real estate agent today, is that all right with you?”

“It’s fine with me. I don’t care if we rent or buy. We’ve got to separate them. I mean, at night. I’ve heard that twins sometimes woke each other up and it made things hard, but it never occurred to me this time,” Blair said. 

“Same here. I remember someone at work said it once, but yet, it didn’t occur to me until yesterday. A little slow, aren’t I?” Jim asked. 

“We both were suffering from lack of sleep, so we’re going to do better now,” Blair promised.

~~~~~~~~~~

**Two Weeks Later:**

Blair sat down opposite Megan Connor and said, “I think we found our home.”

“What are you going to do with the loft?” Megan asked. 

“We weren’t sure, why?” Blair asked. 

“I was thinking maybe I could buy it. I’m going to be here for at least another seven years, so I could get a loan and have the place all to myself. I love the loft,” Megan said. 

“I’ll tell Jim you’re interested. See you later.”

“Wait a minute, what about the house?” 

“It’s a four bedroom in Jim’s dad’s neighborhood. Total over kill on the house, but it makes Jim happy. I’m not going to be cleaning it by myself, so that’s pretty nice,” Blair explained. 

“Nice neighborhood for the girls to grow up in and great schools. Are they still sleeping better?”

“Oh yeah, they sleep great. We’re back on a schedule which will be goofed up when we move, but they’ll get used it soon enough. I’m sort of excited, you know?”

“Good luck, Sandy. We’ll talk to you later. Make sure and tell Jim, I’d like to buy the loft,” Megan said, happily. 

Blair walked over and asked, “Did you hear?”

“Duh. Yes, she can buy it,” Jim said, smiling. 

Blair got right up and went over and told Megan. She rushed over to Jim and hugged him on the shoulders because he wouldn’t get out of his chair. 

“Thank you, Jimbo.”

“She even calls me Jimbo when I’m giving her a good deal,” Jim teased. 

“Let me know when I can watch the twins, while you move. I would love to,” Megan offered. 

“You’re on,” Jim answered. 

“With any luck, that should be soon. We put in an offer on it this morning. We’ll keep you posted,” Blair said. 

“Good luck to both of you. I’m so excited about buying a place for me,” Megan said happily as she walked away. 

Jim knew they were going to have to deal with some issues with the move and the twins, but they could do it together. And William had decided to jump in for date night for the boys. Jim was very pleased about that. 

**TBC**


End file.
